New Orleans Hornets Coach Byron Scott anticipating upcoming season

New Orleans Hornets Coach Byron Scott, facing reporters for the first time since his team was eliminated in the first round of the NBA playoffs April 29, said Friday he views his one-year contract status this coming season as "a challenge," just as it was two years ago when the team won its only division championship.

Scott said the decision not to extend the contract of assistant coach Kenny Gattison, who is leaving the team, was mutual.

Scott also added that surgery revealed center Tyson Chandler's injured ankle was worse than thought, and Chandler's rehabilitation could take four months, close to the beginning of training camp in October.

Scott oversaw the first of the Hornets' predraft workouts with a half-dozen prospects, including North Carolina's Tyler Hansbrough, then discussed his and the team's future.

Scott signed a two-year extension last summer because, at the time, he said he wanted his voice and message to remain fresh with his players.

"I had the same situation two years ago, so why should I think of myself as a lame duck or any other things people say about a coach on his last year?" Scott said. "To me, it's a challenge.

"If we go back to last summer when I signed the deal, I specifically said I wanted a two-year deal just to see how this was going to play out. To make sure the players were still interested, still learning and still understanding where I'm coming from. They're not tired of me, and I'm not tired of them. So I never look at that as a lame duck. Like I said, I love the competition. This is going to be fun for me this year."

Scott said he will approach the season as he did in 2007-08 when the Hornets won a team-record 56 regular-season games and expects his players to respond in the same fashion.

"This is not uncharted water for me." Scott said. "I've been in this situation before, as have a lot of other coaches. Like I said, it doesn't bother me whatsoever. I've got a job to do; I'm going to go out and do it to the best of my ability.

"We'll have a great season, as long as we can stay healthy, add a few more pieces to the puzzle. And I'm very confident in my meetings with Jeff (Bower, general manager) and Hugh (Weber, team president) that we're headed in the right direction. I feel very good about those meetings. I'm excited about this year coming up."

Gattison's departure comes after a season in which New Orleans' big men, Gattison's primary coaching responsibility, either regressed or showed little progress. But that, Scott said, did not enter into the decision to part ways.

Gattison, a former Hornets player in Charlotte who joined the coaching staff in 2003, did not respond to an e-mail seeking comment.

"He just felt it was time for him to move on; that he had done about as much here as he could do," Scott said. "And I agreed with him that, 'All right, it's time for us to look elsewhere, as well.' Like I said, we had a meeting for about an hour. We talked about everything, and it was mutual. Both of us left the meeting feeling pretty good about it. So we'll move on.

"Kenny wanted to pursue some other opportunities, and I felt great about that with him. The biggest thing is we wish him all the best. Kenny and I have been friends for a long time and will continue to be friends. He's a big part of what we've done here the last four or five seasons, and I wish him all the best."

Scott said he plans to hire another assistant to tutor the team's big men but is in no rush to fill the vacancy. He also said he'd again reach out to former Hornets forward P.J. Brown to gauge Brown's interest in the job.

Scott said Chandler, who underwent surgery on his left ankle and toe two weeks ago in New York, is upbeat. Calls to Chandler's agent, Jeff Schwartz, were not returned.

"He had the ankle surgery, and they said it was a lot worse off than they thought when they went in there," Scott said. "They also went in there and cleaned the toe up a little more. He's feeling really good. He was excited about the surgery and couldn't wait to get back on the basketball court, and he really feels this is going to give him the agility and the movement that he had a few years ago, so he can get back to playing like his old self."